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Creative Minds

Creative Mind: Joseph Walsh

The self-taught woodworker operates from his family farm in County Cork, where he also holds his annual Making In festival

By Jacqueline Terrebonne
Man in green turtleneck and black pants sitting on a wooden chair in a minimalist room.
Joseph Walsh. Photo: COURTESY OF ANDREW BRADLEY

Wood often feels sturdy, quite literally rooted to the ground, but in the deft hands of Irish artisan Joseph Walsh the natural material seems to soar, dance, and glide. A self-taught woodworker, he handcrafts otherworldly furniture—some of which has been acquired for major museums—and executes impressive commissions, including a set of 24 dining chairs for Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, England. He works intuitively, using traditional techniques while also pushing himself to innovate. Walsh operates from his family farm in County Cork, where he also holds his annual Making In festival, a two-day gathering of artisans of different disciplines from around the world.

Recently, he completed his first large-scale outdoor sculpture, Magnus RINN, a circular form moving from wood to bronze with gold gilding, for the Irish pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan. The piece is now on view at Kyoto monastery Chion-in Temple. “I find it very healthy for me to make something where I take away the function and then it must be so much more significant and relevant,” says Walsh, who is constructing another monumental sculpture, for Adare Manor in Limerick, debuting during the 2027 Ryder Cup.

Man in green turtleneck and black pants standing in modern art gallery with abstract sculpture and clear plastic on floor
The artist at his County Cork, Ireland, workshop with his Enignum Free Form chair and Enignum sculpture. Photo: COURTESY OF ANDREW BRADLEY
Ornate room with dramatic murals on walls and ceiling, featuring a sculptural wooden bed, flanked by modern white speakers.
Enignum Bed at Chatsworth House. Photo: Freddy Griffiths, Courtesy of Joseph Walsh

Special projects: “I love having commissions with real, deep meaning,” says Walsh, who made a conductor’s rail for Teddy Abrams, head of the Louisville Orchestra in Kentucky, as well as the altar for the Chapel of St. Ignatius and Gayle and Tom Benson Jesuit Center at Loyola University in New Orleans.

Elegant chair beside ornate table with red vases in a luxurious, gold-accented room.
The Enignum Locus chair by Joseph Walsh. Photo: COURTESY OF ANDREW BRADLEY
Elegant wooden bench in a grand ornate room with tall painted pillars and intricate wall decorations.
Novasedes, a site-specific piece for Prince Alfred and Princess Alice Liechtenstein by Joseph Walsh. Photo: COURTESY OF LIPP ZAHNSCHIRM
Modern dining room with an artistic chandelier, abstract wall art, a sleek marble table, and a cityscape view from the window.
Lumenoria Dining Table in a New York apartment. Photo: Courtesy of Joseph Walsh

A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2026 Spring Issue in the section “Creative Minds.” Subscribe to the magazine.